When he played his guitar and sang, well, the just-about-capacity crowd at the Onondaga County War Memorial could hardly let a note go by without singing along.

The 25-year-old from Connecticut showed the kind of charisma that makes you feel special just by being in the same room with him. Fortunately, he proved to be much more than just Joe Popularity. His husky James Taylor-meets-Dave Matthews voice and nimble Eric Clapton-meets-the-21st-century guitar work deserved all the screams and cheers from the heavy-on-the-student crowd.

He captivated them with work from his latest album, the major-label debut "Room for Squares," as well as his independent debut, "Inside Wants Out."

"'Room for Squares' is an album with 12 songs with more words than the Bible and one song with less words than a box of cereal," Mayer told the crowd.

They hung on every wordy song, from the acoustic "Why Georgia" to the electric "Back to You."

They really loved the radio favorites "No Such Thing" and "Your Body Is a Wonderland." Mayer even drew a smart chuckle for the latter with the introduction "This song is about world affairs."

Yet they roared in recognition at the first chords from just about every song from "No Room for Squares," including "My Stupid Mouth."

Mayer pumped up "83" with a hip intro and "outro." Before, he serenaded his fans with the Police's "King of Pain," and at the end, he threw in Deniece Williams' "Let's Hear It for the Boy." Both songs, of course, were from the year of which he sang, 1983, when he was 6 years old and loved Superman.

Now, Mayer showed that he appreciates that music fans consider him a superhero.

"Thank you for making this an amazing last couple of years," he said. "Hopefully we can do this together for a lot of years."

Opener Nickel Creek hopefully will play its modern bluegrass for the masses for many years to come, too.

The trio from southern California - Sara Watkins on violin, Chris Thile on mandolin, Sean Watkins on guitar and all three of them on vocals - approach the time-honored string style with the attitude appropriate for three people in their early 20s.

Thile, in particular, is a star on the rise.

His mandolin work was amazing. He attacked the string instrument with the same zeal with which Eddie Van Halen went at his guitar for decades.

And his voice is sweet, pure and gorgeous.

Joined by upright bassist Derek Jones, they won the crowd over with the soaring title track from their disc "This Side."

"I Should've Known Better" was a thick, folklike march worthy of The Band.

"The Lighthouse's Tale," from their self-titled debut, let all the musicians stand out.